I did consultancy on some GoB projects so I had the opportunity to work closely with BGB and VDP and Graam Police back in 2023/24 across remote Unions in the border regions.
This one time at Satkhira after a meeting with an UP Chairman, we had some time to kill before heading back to our accommodation at KCC. So this BGB Captain (I think) asked me something along the lines of whether a city-slicker like myself believed in these things and although I do, for the sake of a fun debate I said I didn’t. So he said bhaia cholen apnake akta jaygay niye jai tahole…
The union was Kaliganj but I cannot tell you the specifics of the exact village he took me to because it was so very remote that we didn’t have any network connectivity. Barely got BL, not Robi, GP, nothing. Anyway after a 1.5 hour detour we ended up at this clearing with a huge tree (maybe an old ass bot-gaach or aam-gaach) in the middle (something like a school’s space I cant recall exactly what that place was). I saw a line of people leading up to the tree for a good 90 seconds straight before we even reached the clearing. I.e. a LOT of people. We got out, bypassed them all and made our way straight to the tree. The BGB guy said bhaia apni kichu boilen na, shudhu shunen and observe koren, kono comment korben na. Since I was surrounded by uniforms, the locals made way and at the foot the of tree sat a man in his late 50s dressed in all black from head to toe, with a black cap on. Very tanned individual with a bushel of white and black beard all the way down to his chest. He was surrounded by 5-10 senior Hujurs and Madrasa teens. He didn’t acknowledge our existence but the uniforms seemed to know his associates so they just waved Salam and let us stand right next to him and observe…he sat on a surprisingly clean mat, on the dirt. Behind him was a makeshift curtain of sorts made with colourful clothing stitched together. Each fabric had a different Arabic prayer inscription on it. That’s the setting…
So he was basically “consulting” each and every single person who lined up for what I later understood were various reasons. Some were there regarding troubled marriages and problematic in-laws, a woman was there regarding difficulty in conceiving, another man about jobs and jomi stuff…he charged exactly 47 taka from each individual for his consultancy. Not a penny more or less regardless of what the issue was. EXACTLY 47 taka. I saw this with my own eyes: for most cases, the second a person would sit infront of him, he would stare at them quietly for about 5 seconds, then hold their hands for another 5, and then give them specific solutions like panir shathe xyz mix kore khaben or x number of days omuk manusher shamne jaben na…for extreme cases his associates helped him make Tabij on the spot which were handed out…now, the kicker: barring exactly four people, not a single person EVER talked about their problems with/to him. HE KNEW exactly what their problems were. And it was like an unwritten rule that the locals who lined up also knew, that they are not to say a word to him unless spoken to or asked something specific…in exactly four instances, he asked the individuals infront of him some questions and they responded. Even the questions were very specific despite them never sharing anything with him on the spot. Like I clearly remember one: apnar shashuri jehetu Dhakay thake omuk jaygay, unake omuk maasher omuk din ashte bolben, amar shather akjon ke pathay dibo basha ‘Baandh’ deyar jonno…Keep in mind this is without that woman uttering a word…We observed this for a good 20 minutes or more and in 20 minutes he was done consulting maybe 40+ individuals on various issues. They sat, stayed silent, listened to his consultations, and left…
I found out later that this guy is famed across the entire Khulna belt and he routinely goes across the border to do this as well (legally naki illegally sheta jani na)…apparently big Alems and Hafez travel far and wide to shake hands and take photos with him. I dont have an explanation for what I SAW with my own two eyes. I have had exactly TWO instances of paranormal or supernatural or inexplicable occurrences in my life barring this…Once at a rental house I had at Bashundhara R/A, and once at the states, not in BD. I am not saying Jinn-bhoot, kalo jadu, etc. I legitimately have no answer for what I say unless the 400+ people who were there are all conmen on his payroll. Idk what was happening or what he did…